NEW TAMPA, Fla. — Public libraries across Hillsborough County are trying to promote summer reading among children and teens by making it a game you can play through the computer.
It’s called the Beanstack app, and 11-year-old Joanna Binu has already used it to log more than 150 hours of summer reading.
Binu is one of more than 3,600 people participating in the Hillsborough County Summer Reading Challenge.
“It expands my horizons the more I read,” said Binu.
“The goal for us would be to read 20 minutes a day which over the summer would total up to 24 hours,” said Cheryl Wolfe, manager of Library Learning Experiences.
Wolfe said they're trying to help families avoid something called the summer slide.
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“Studies have shown that kids and teens can lose up to two months of reading and learning skills over the summer,” said Wolfe.
So in order to compete with screen time, the library is using the screen to its advantage through Beanstack, where you can track your reading hours and earn digital badges for various milestones.
“I earned 22 badges, and it’s improving me a lot,” said Binu.
“So it’s really motivating and exciting to be able to use these features as well as track your reading and see your progress as you go,” said Wolfe.
“It keeps a journal of all the books I read throughout the summer, and I can check it again; it gives me recommendations based on my interest for the next book,” said Binu.
Binu’s parents said they’ve already noticed a difference in how their daughter is spending her spare time.
“She wanted for us to come to the library and be more social,” said Binu’s dad.
Even Binu’s little brother is watching how much fun his big sister is having and following her lead.
“He’s improving,” said Binu
For more information on all of the programs available through Hillsborough County Public Library Cooperative, click here.
